I
  ASOCIALIMPOSSIBILITY
  ItwasoneofNovember’sraredays。Thekindlyair,vitalwiththebreathofthenorthwindandmellowwiththegenialsun,wasfullofpurplehaze;thegrass,stillvividlygreen,gavenohintofthecomingwinter;thetrees,bonyandbarebutforafewragsofsummerdress,russet—brownandgold,stoodsoftenedofalltheirharshnessinthepurplehazeandslanting,yellowlightoftheautumnafternoon。Natureworeafaceofcontent。Shehadfulfilledhercourseforanotheryear,and,satisfiedwithherachievement,wasobviouslythinkingofsettlingherselfintoherwinter’ssleep。
  Itwasagooddaytobealive。Thetingleintheairsomehowgotintotheblood。
  SoitfelttoayounggirlwhodancedoutfromunderthetreesonthewestboundaryoftheUniversitycampus。
  "Oh!"shecriedtoherstatelier,tallersister,whowithayoungmanfollowedmoresedatelyintotheopen。"Oh,whataday!Whatapicture!"
  Shewasabonnymaidjustoutofherteens,and,withherbrowngown,brownhairandeyes,redcheeks,andwholesome,happyface,shefittedwellintothepicturesheherselflookedupon。
  "Dearold’Varsity,"saidhersisterinavoicequiet,butthrillingwithintensefeeling。"ThereisnothingsolovelyinallthiscityofToronto。"
  "Toronto!"exclaimedtheyoungmanatherside。"Well,Ishouldsay!
  Don’tyouknowthatadistinguishedAmericanartcriticdeclaresthisbuildingthemostsymmetrical,themostharmonious,themostperfectlyproportionedbitofarchitectureontheAmericancontinent。Andthatissomething,fromacitizenofthe’biggestnationondryland。’"
  Theywalkedslowlyandsilentlyalongtheborderofthematchlessvelvetylawn,notingthemanyfeaturesofbeautyintheoldgreyfaceoftheUniversitybuilding——theharmoniousvarietyoflinesandcurvesincuriousgargoyles,dragons,andgryphonsthatadornedthecornicesandthelintels,pausinglongtoadmirethewonderfulcarvedentrancewithitsmassivetowerabove。
  "Great,isn’tit?"saidLloyd。"Thewholething,Imean——park,lawn,andthedearold,greystones。"
  Atthismomentsomemeninfootballgarbcamerunningoutofthepillaredportico。
  "Oh,here’stheteam!"criedBetty,theyoungersister,ecstatically。"Aretheygoingtoplay?"
  "No,Ithinknot,"saidLloyd。"Campbellwouldnotriskanyscrimmagingortacklingthisevening,withMcGillmenevennowintownthirstingfortheirblood。He’sgotthemoutforaruntolimberuptheirwindandthingsforto—morrow。"
  Thesisterswerefootballenthusiasts。ForthepastfouryearsthebeautifulRosedalehomeoftheFairbankshadbeentherendezvousforstudents,and,asmanyofthesehadbeenfootballmen,theyoungladieshadbecomeasdevotedtothegameandalmostasexpertinitsfinepointsasanyofitschampions。
  "Don’ttheylookwellandfit,"exclaimedBettyasthestringofrunnerswentpast。
  "Yes,andfittheyareeveryman,"repliedLloyd。"There’sCampbell!
  He’satrulygreatcaptain,knowshismen,andgetsoutofthemallthatispossible。"
  "Yes,andthere’sBrown;andMcNab,isn’tit?Aren’ttheythequarters?"askedBettyexcitedly。
  Lloydnodded。"Andyondergoes`Shock,’thegreatShock。"
  "Oh,where?"criedBetty。"Yes,yes。Now,doyouknowIthinkheisjustasmeanashecanbe。HereIhavebeenbowingandsmilingmybestandsweetestforfouryears,andthoughheknowsalotofthemenweknowheisjustasmuchastrangerasever,"andBettypoutedinamannerthatwouldhavebroughtdeepsatisfactiontoShockhadheseenher。
  "Herearethethreehalves,aren’tthey?"inquiredHelen,theeldersister。
  "Yes,"repliedLloyd。"There’sMartinandBate。Finefellow,Bate——
  and——"
  "Oh!"brokeinBetty,"there’sthe’TheDon。’dowishtheywouldlook。Theyneedn’tpretendtheydon’tseeus,thehorridthings。"
  "Ofcoursetheyseeyou,"answeredLloyd,"buttheyareengagedinseriousbusiness。Yousurelydon’texpecttodiverttheirattentionfromthepursuitoftheirnobleart。Why,who,orwhatdoyouconceiveyourselftobe?"
  ButBettyonlysmiledserenely,andshookhercurlsbacksaucily。
  "Oh,Iknow,"repliedLloyd,"Iknowwhatyouaresaying。`Someday,somedaytheywillgrovel。’Alas,onlytoosoon!And,indeed,herecomesTheDononhissecondround。I’llaskhimwhathemeans。"
  "Ifyoudare!"criedBetty。
  "Mr。Lloyd!"saidHelenhaughtily,andMr。Lloydthoughtbetterofit。
  But"TheDon"didnotevenglancetowardthegroup。
  "Lookatthat,now,"saidLloyddisgustedly。
  "Didanyoneeverseesuchbesotteddevotiontoabarbarousvocation。"
  "Hedidnotseeusatall,"insistedBetty。"ButwhyisMr。Balfourcalled’TheDon’?"
  "Obviously,Ishouldsay,fromhisDon—likeappearance,bearing,carriage,etc。ButIamnotanauthority。AsklittleBrown,yourspecialslave。HeknowsallaboutbothShockandTheDon。"
  "Whatabsurdnamesyouhave,"exclaimedBetty。"Now,whatisthereasonforShock’sname?Isittheshockofhischargeinthescrimmage?"
  "Notbad,that。Iratherfear,however,ithastodowithhismoststrikingfeature,iffeatureitbe,for,whenyoupullhimfeetfirstoutofascrimmage,amethodnotinfrequentlyadopted,hisheadisasighttobehold。But,asIsaidbefore,askBrown。"
  "Iwillto—night。He’scomingoveraftertea。Youarecoming,too,areyounot?"
  Lloydbowed。"Ishallbedelighted"
  TruetoherwordBettygreetedBrown,onhisappearanceinthecosy,homelikeparlouroftheFairbanks’thatevening,withthequestion,"Howdid’TheDon’comebyhisnickname?"
  "Oh,didyouneverknowthat?Mostfellowsputitdowntohisstyle,butit’snotthat。Hegotitfromhisblood。Youknow,hisfatherwasoneofthoseWestIndia,sea—captainsthatoneusedtofindstrewnthickthroughHalifaxsociety,whomadefortunesinrumandlostthemprettymuchthesameway。Well,theoldcaptainmarriedaSpanishgirl。Ihaveseenherportrait,andshewasabeauty,a`high—bredSpanishlady,’sureenough。Livedsomewhereintheislands。CamehomewiththeCaptain,anddiedinHalifax,leavinghersevenyearoldboyinchargeofanaunt。Fatherdiedsoonafterwards。Grief,Ibelieve,anddrink。Eventhenhispeoplecalledthe’thelittleDon。’Hehadalittlemoneylefthimtostartwith,butthathaslongsincevanished。Atanyrate,forthelastfiveorsixyearshehashadtofendforhimself。"
  "Quitearomance,"saidLloyd。
  "Isn’tit?"exclaimedBetty。"Andhenevertoldaword。"
  "Well,TheDon’snotapublisher。"
  "Butthenhetoldyou。"
  "Yes,hetoldmeandShockonenight。Helikesus,yousee。"
  "’Degustibusnondisputandum,’"murmuredLloyd,andinanswertoBetty’sinquiringlookadded,"astheoldwomansaidwhenshekissedhercow。"
  "Nowthen,whataboutShock’sname?"continuedBetty。
  "Hair,"saidBrownlaconically。"Youhaveseenhimcomeoutofascrimmagelikeacrab?"
  "Yes。Isn’thejustlovelythen?"exclaimedBetty。
  "Lovely?Oh,woman,woman!Aghastly,bloody,fearsomespectacle。
  Lovely!Butitwaseverthus。’ButcheredtomakeaRomanholiday,’"
  repliedLloyd。
  "Well,heisratherbloody。Bleedseasily,you;know,butitdoesn’thurtatall,"saidBrown。"Heneverreallyenjoyshimselftillthebloodflows。"
  "DisgustingoldBerserker!"exclaimedLloyd。
  "ButIthinkheisjustadear,"wentonBettyenthusiastically。
  "Thewayheputshisheadrightdownintoacrowdofmen,andletsthemjumponhimandmaulhim!"
  "Yes,"repliedhersister,whohadtakenlittlepartintheconversation,"andcomesoutsmiling。ThatiswhatIlike。"
  "Andbloody,"addedLloyd。"That’swhatMissBettylikes。"
  "Iwanttoknowabouthim,"criedBettyimpatiently。"Whydon’twegettoknowhim?Tellmeabouthim,"sheinsisted。"Wheredoeshelive?Whoarehispeople?"
  Brownhesitated。
  "Well,yousee,Shock’sshy。DoesnotgoinforthesortofthingthatLloyd,forinstance,revelsandglittersin——teas,functions,socialrouts,andallthat,youknow。Hehasonlyhismother,adearoldHighlandlady,poor,proud,andindependent。ShelivesinaquaintlittlehouseoutontheCommonsawaybehindthecollege,andlivesfor,in,with,by,andaroundShock,andheviceversa。Heshareseverythingwithher,hisworkdowninthemission——"
  "Mission!"interruptedBetty。
  "Yes。RunsamissiondowninSt。John’sward。Givesherallhisexperienceswiththedenizensofthatprecinct,keepsherintouchwithhiscollegework,andevenwithhisfootball。Yououghttoseehimlayaoutthebigmatchesbeforeherontheteatablewithplates,cups,saltcellars,knives,spoons,andyououghttoseeherexcitementandhearhercriticisms。Oh,she’sagreatsport!"
  "Goon,"saidHelen,herfineeyesbeginningtoglow。"Goon。Tellusmoreabouther。"
  ButBrownshutupabruptly,asifhehadbeentakingalibertywiththeprivacyofhisfriend’shome。
  "Oh,"hesaidlightly,"there’snothingmoretotell。Theyliveaveryquiet,verysimple,but,Ithink,averybeautifullife。"
  "Andshe’sfondoffootball?"inquiredBetty。
  "Devotedtoit。"
  "Andhassheneverseenagame?HassheneverseenShockplay?"
  inquiredHelen。
  "Never。"
  "Wouldshebeafraid?"
  "WouldyouinsultthewidowofaSutherlandHighlanderwhosepictureinwarlikeregaliaregardsherdailyfromhercottagewall?"
  "Well,Iamgoingtoseeher,"exclaimedBetty。
  Brownlookedannoyed。
  "Whatfor?"
  "Why,Iamgoingtocall。"
  Brownlaughedalittlescornfully。"Yes,andbesuretoleavethreecards——isit?——andtellheryourday。"
  "Whatdoyoumean?"exclaimedBettyindignantly。"Youarenotverypolite。"
  "Oh,Iamsorry,really。ButIimaginedtheoldladylookingatyouandwonderingwhatwasyourparticularbusiness,andthenIthoughtofyourdifficultyinmakingitquitecleartoher。"
  "Why!doesshenotcallonanyone?"
  "No。Shetakesherknittingandvisits。"
  "Well,I’mgoinganyway,somehow。I’llaskShocktotakeme。"
  "Oh,Betty,youcouldnotdothat,"saidHelen。"Nomanwouldlikeexhibitinghishome,muchlesshismother。"
  ButBettyshookherheaddecidedly,saying,"I’llfindsomeway。
  Tellme,whatdoesshelike?"
  "Shock。"
  "ButImeanwhatamusementandpleasurehasshe?"
  "Amusement!Shadesofthemightypast!Why,MissBetty,"Brown’stoneissadandsevere,"inmyyoungdaysyoungpeopleneverthoughtofamusement。Wehadnotimeforsuchfollies。"
  "Oh,nonsense!"exclaimedBettyimpatiently。"HasshenootherinterestinlifethanShock?"
  "None。Herchurch,——shewouldregardyourprelacywithhorror,——andShock,andShock’sdoingsandgoings——andfootball,ofcourse,asI
  havesaid。Shockplays,yousee。"
  "ThenIhaveanidea,"criedHelen。"We’ll——"
  "Dogoon,"appealedBrown。
  "Bettergiveittohim,"saidLloyd。"Anidea,youknow,istosomepeoplearareandvaluableasset。"
  "Notnow。PerhapslaterImayimpartit,"saidHelen。
  "Itwouldbeagreatkindness,"saidBrownhumbly,"ifyoucouldletmehaveitsoon。"
  "Natureabhorsavacuum,youknow,"putinLloyd。
  AtthispointthebellrangandTheDoncamein。Hewasayoungmanofstrikingappearance,handsome,dark,wellsetup,withtheeyesofhisSpanishmother,butwiththeheadandjawofhisScotchsea—
  captainfather。Withallhiseaseofmannertherewasashy,proudreserveabouthim,andakindofgrandairthatsethimapartfromanycompanyinwhichhemightappear。
  Aftersalutingtheyoungladieswithasomewhatformalbow,heannounced,"Iwantyou,Brown。"
  "Oh,sitdown,"criedBetty。"Sitdown,Mr。Balfour。Wearenotgoingtoallowyoutocarryoffourvisitorinthisabruptmanner。"
  "Yes,takeyourselfoff,"criedBrown。"YouseeIcan’tbespared。"
  "Pleasesitdown,"urgedHelen。"Wewanttoaskyouaboutthematch。"
  "Ireallycannot,"repliedTheDon。"Iamonduty,yousee。"
  "Onduty?"
  "Yes。Lookingaftermenwhowouldstayouttoallhours,andregalethemselvesuponcakeandallsortsofindigestiblestuff。Andmorethanthat,Shockisoutsidewaiting。"
  "Oh,"criedBetty,"dobringhimin。ForyearsHelenandIhaveknownhim,andyetwedon’tknowhim。Bringhimin。"
  "Canyounotpersuadehimtocomein?"urgedHelen。
  "IamsureIcannot。Butifyouweretotry——"TheDonpaused,lookingdoubtfullyather。Helenhesitated。
  "Oh,he’sawful,Iknow。Hewillhardlyspeaktome,"interruptedBetty。"Butifyou’llcomewithmeI’llhumblemyselfbeforehim。"
  Inamomentortwo,sureenough,theyreturned,withShockfollowing。
  Hewasabigman,gauntandbony,withamightypairofshoulderstoppedbyasquare,massiveheadonwhichbristledaveritableshockofcoarse,yellowhair。Buthehadastrong,honestface,andgood,deepblueeyes。Heseemedtoobigfortheroom,andaftershakinghandsawkwardlywithHelen,whohadgoneforwardtomeethim,hesubsidedinto,deeparm—chair,strugglingwithhishandsandfeet。
  ThecontrastbetweenShockontheonehand,andtheelegantLloydandthehandsomeDonontheother,couldhardlybemorestriking。
  Allintheroomwereconsciousofthiscontrastandsoughtinevery,waytominimiseit。Bettyplungedintofootballtalk,towhichShocklistenedforthemostpartsmilinglysilent。
  Shewasdeterminedtodrawherunhappyvisitorfromhisshell。Buthermostbrillianteffortswereinvain。PoorShockremainedhopelesslyengagedwithhishandsandfeet,andrepliedatunexpectedplaces,inexplosivemonosyllablesatonceludicrousanddisconcerting。NotevenTheDon,whocametoherassistance,couldrelievetheawkwardnessofthesituation。Shockwastoolargetobeignored,andtoounwieldytobeadjusted。
  AfterafewminutesofhopelessendeavourTheDongaveuptheattemptandrosetogo,saying:"Youwillneedtoexcuseus。Wearedueatameetingto—night。Comealong,Brown。"
  ThealacritywhichShockdisplayedingettinguponhisfeetgaveabundanttestimonytotheagonyhehadbeensufferingduringthelasthalfhour。
  "Yes,wemustbeoff,"saidBrown,farmoreeagertogothanwashiswont。
  "Willyounotcomeagain?"saidBettytoShock,assheshookhandswithhim。"Mymotherwouldbegladtoseeyou。"
  ButShockcouldonlylookatherblankly,evidentlywonderingwhathermothermightwishtoseehimfor,andwhenBettytriedtoextractapromisefromhimhemutteredsomethingaboutbeing"farbehindinhisworkandverybusy。"
  ButBettywasnottobebaulked。
  "Ishouldliketocallonyourmother,"shesaid。ButagainShocklookedblank,whileBrownbegantomakefacesatherfrombehindhisback。
  "Whenwillyourmotherbein?"shepersisted。
  "Oh,she’sineveryday,exceptwhenshegoesoutforawalk,or——"
  Brownkeptuphissignalling,andTheDonbegantolookpuzzledandannoyed。
  "Well,"saidBettydesperately,"Iwouldliketogoandseehersomeday。"
  Shockhesitated,blushed,andthenanswered:"Wehavenofriendsinthecity,andwedonotvisitmuch,and——"
  "Oh,I’lltellyou,MissBetty,"burstinBrown。"GetasharpattackoftyphoidandMrs。Macgregorwillthencomeandseeyou。She’sagreatnurse。"
  "Thatsheis,"saidShockenthusiastically。"Shewouldbegladtocome。"
  "Comealong,Brown,"brokeinTheDon。"Wearelatenow。Comealong,Shock,"andthethreemenwentofftogether,leavingLloydbehind。
  "Isn’theawful?"saidBeth。"Anddidn’tIhumiliatemyself?"
  "Youcertainlydeservedhumiliation,"saidhersisterindignantly。
  "Youmighthaveseenhewasdreadfullyshy,andyououghttohavelefthimalone。Andnowformygreatidea。Iwilltakeyoubothintomyconfidence。IamgoingtodriveMrs。Macgregortothematchto—
  morrow。"
  "Splendid!"exclaimedBetty。"AndI’llgowithyou。Buthowcanyoupersuadeher?"
  "Ihavethoughtaboutthat,"saidHelen。"We’llaskMr。Browntodrivearoundwithusalittlebefore,andI’msureshewillgo。"
  "Willyouallowmetojointheparty?"humblyaskedLloyd,"oristheresomeoneelse?"
  "Oh,"saidBetty,"wearesuretoneedsomebody,andyouwilldoaswellasanyother。"
  InobediencetoaninvitationconveyedbyLloyd,BrownappearedattheFairbankshouseintheearlymorning。Eagerlytheyoungladiespropoundedtheirplan。AtonceBrownenteredheartilyintoit,andcallingwiththemintheafternoonpersuadedtheoldladythatsheoughttoattendthegreatmatch,emphasisingespeciallythefactthatShockwouldbedelightedtoseeherthere,andwouldbestimulatedtodohisverybestbyherpresence。
  "Itwilllikelybehislastgame,too,"urgedBrown。
  Thisfinallydecidedthematter,andsoitturnedoutthatperhapsthemostenthusiastic,andcertainlythemostpicturesque,ofallthegroupsthatsurroundedthecampusnextdaywasthatwhichfilledtheFairbankscarriage,consistingoftwoyoungladies,anelegantlyattiredyoungman,andaquaint,plainlydressed,butundeniablydignified,oldlady。
  II
  VARSITYVERSUSMcGILL
  Itisagloriousautumnday。Thesmokyairwithjustanipofthecomingfrostinithangsstilloverthetrees,throughwhosebaretopsandinterlacingboughsthegenialsunlightfallsinagoldengloryuponthegrassbelow。Thenipintheair,thegoldenlight,thethrillinguncertaintyofthecomingmatch,themagnitudeoftheissueatstake,combinetoraisetheardouroffootballenthusiaststothehighestpitch。
  Therecordofeachteamisunique。Eachhasgonethroughthechampionshipserieswithoutasinglereverse。Perhapsneverintheirhistoryhavebothuniversitiesbeenmoreworthilyrepresentedthanbytheteamsthataretocontestto—daythechampionshipoftheDominion。
  TheMcGillmenarethefirsttoappearonthecampus,andarewelcomedwithloudandgenerouscheers,whichare,however,redoubledupontheappearanceofthe’Varsitychampions。
  ManyeyesareturnedupontheFairbankscarriage。TheyoungladiesarewellknowninUniversitycircles;butthequaintoldlady,lookingsohandsomeinspiteofherplainblackbonnet,awakensthecuriosityofthecrowd,whichonlyincreaseswhenitbecomesknownthatsheisShock’smother。
  "DoyouseeHamish,mydear?"inquirestheoldlady。"TheyaresomuchalikeIcannotdistinguishhim。"
  "Goandbringhim,"criesBetty,andLloydreturnsinamomentwithShockandlittleBrown。
  "Mother!mother!Thisisawful。Youwon’tlikeitabit。You’llthinkI’mgettingkilledmanyatime。"
  Buttheoldladyonlysmilesplacidly。"Indeed,andI’mnotafraidforyou。Runaway,Hamish,andbecarefuloftheladdies。"
  "Don’ttellhimthat,Mrs。Macgregor,"pleadsBrown。"He’sfartoogentleasitis。"
  Somefewminutesarespentinarrangingforthekick—off。
  "Oh,Idowishtheywouldstart,"exclaimsBetty,standingupinthecarriage。"Iftheywouldonlystart!"sherepeats。"Iwanttohaveachancetoshriek。"
  "Theretheygo!"exclaimsLloyd。
  ItisMcGill’skick。Huntingdon,thebigcaptainandcentreforward,takesitmagnificently,followinguphardwithhiswholeteam。
  Pepper,the’Varsityfullback,however,isatthespotandreturnsintotouch。Inthethrow—inMcGillsecurestheball,andbyaswiftrushmakesfifteenortwentyfeet,when,amidthecheersofthespectators,bothteamssettledownintotheirfirstscrimmage。
  Thesearethedaysofclosescrimmageplay,whenninemenoneachsideputtheirheadsdownwiththeballbetweenthem,andshovefordearlife。Pickingout,heelingout,orkickingoutisstrictlyforbiddenandpromptlypenalised。
  Thefirstscrimmageresultsinadeadball。Oncemoreascrimmageisformed,butagaintheresultisadeadball。Overandoveragainthisplayisrepeatedwithverylittlegainoneitherside。Itgraduallybecomesapparent,however,thatMcGillinascrimmageisslightlyheavier。Footbyfoottheyworktheirwaytowardthe’Varsitygoal。
  Thecriesof"Holdthem,’Varsity!Holdthem,’Varsity!"and,"You’vegot’em,McGill!You’vegot’em!"indicatethejudgmentofthespectators。
  "Ay,"saystheoldlady,"theyareabitheavyforthem,Idoubt。"
  "Who!"inquiresBetty,muchamused。
  "TheMontreallads。Butwewillbewaitingameenute。"
  Itisaveryslowgameforthecrowdsthatlineeverysideofthefield。Neitherteamwilllettheballout。Againandagainthequartersnipuptheballandpass,butthetacklingissohardandswiftthatthehalvescannotgetaway,andbypassinggroundisalmostalwayslost。
  "Keepitin!"istheword。Inchbyinchtowardsthe’VarsitygoaltheMcGillforwardsfighttheirway。
  SuddenlytheMcGillscrimmageweakensandbreaksup。Theirquarterseizestheball,passesitlowandswifttoBunch,whoisofflikethewindacrossthefield,dodgesthroughthequarters,knocksoffMartinandBate,andwithTheDoncomingharduponhisflank,setsoffforthe’VarsitylinewithonlyPepperbetweenhimandatouch—
  down。
  ButPepperiswaitingforhim,coolandsteady。AsBunchnearshimhecroucheslikeacat,creepingslowlytomeethiscomingfoe。TenfeetfromthelinestraightatthefullbackgoesBunch。Attwopacesdistancehechangeshismindandswervestotheleftwiththehopeofdodgingpast。
  Buthehasventuredtoofar。Peppertakestwoshortsteps,andlikeatigerspringsathisfoe,windshisarmsroundhishipsanddragshimdown,whileTheDonfromthesideleapsfiercelyonhimandholdstheballsafe,fivefeetfromtheline。
  ’Varsitygoeswildwithrelief。
  "Pepper!Pepper!RedhotPepper!"theychantrapturouslyinenthusiasticgroupshereandthere,asPepper’sredheademergesfromthecrowdpileduponhimandtheprostrateBunch。Againandagainrisesthechant,asthefullbackreturnsataslowtrottohisplacebehindtheline。
  "Indeed,itisPepperisthegrandladdie,"saystheoldladyapprovingly。"Many’sthegamehehassaved,Hamishwillbetellingme。"
  "Now,McGill!"callsoutaMontrealman,leadinghisfellows。"Stonewall!Stonewall!Shove’emin!Shove’emin!"
  Butthe’Varsitycaptainisalivetohisdanger,andgettinghismenlowdownhedeterminestoholdtheenemyfasttillthefuryoftheirattackbesomewhatspent,ortillfortuneshallbringhimaid。
  "Getup!Getupthere,’Varsity!"yellstheMcGillcontingent。
  "Lookat’emsayingtheirprayers!"shoutsaboy。
  "Theyneedto,"answersanother。
  "Getup,’Varsity!Getup!Don’tbeafraid!"theyyellderisively。
  "Make’emstandup,referee,"aMontrealmaninsists。
  AgainandagaintheMcGillcaptainappealstothereferee,whoremonstrates,urges,andfinallyordersthe’Varsitytogetuporbepenalised。
  Campbellperceivesthatsomethingmustbedone。HemovesShockfromthecentretotheleftwingofthescrimmageandcallsinMartinandBatefromhalf。
  Bythistimeevery’Varsitymanisonhisfeet,forheknowsthatShockisabouttoleadthe"screw"andbeforethescrimmageiswellformedtheMcGillstonewallisbroken,andCampbellisboringthroughitwiththebat,gainingagoodtenfeetandbyaquickre—
  formtenmore。
  "Man,man,takeheed。Yon’sadangerousgame,I’mthinking,"murmursShock’smotheranxiously,totheamazedamusementofLloyd,whoreplies,"Why,Mrs。Macgregor,youseemtoknowthegameaswellastherestofus。"
  "Ay,Hamishhasoftenshowedmetheworkingofthescrew,anditisnottobedependeduponinaplacelikeyon。"
  The’Varsityteambreathefreelyagainandgoinwithnewvim,whileMcGillsettlesdownontheballtorecoversteadiness。
  Butthe’Varsitycaptainhasseenthescrewworkandresolvestotryitagain。OncemorehemoveShocktothewing,signalstothequarters,andagaintheMontrealstonewallisdemoralised。ButinsteadofCampbellboringovertheprostrateformofhisbigcentrewiththeballtheMcGillcaptain,securingit,passestoCarroll,hisquarter,whodashingoffasafeinttotheright,passesfaracrossthefieldtoBunchontheleft。
  Bunchasusualisinhisplace,catchesbeautifullyandisoffdownthefieldlikeawhirlwind,dodgingone,knockingoffanother,runningroundathird,tillbetweenhimandthegoallinehehasonlythehalfback,Martin,andthefull。
  TheMcGillpeoplegowildagain。"Bunch!Bunch!"theyyellfrantically,crowdingdownthelineafterhim。"He’sin!He’sin!"
  Butnotyet。RedPepperisswiftlybearingdownuponhim,andashecomeswithinreachspringsathim。ButthewilyBunchhaslearnedtomeasurethatlongreach,anddodgingbacksharply,heslipsroundPepperandmakesforthelinetenyardsaway。
  Alonggroangoesupfromthe’Varsitysupport,whilefromahundredMcGillthroatsrisesthecryagain——"He’sin!He’sin!Atouch!A
  touch!"